Dear Music Friends,

As an independent artist within such a niche genre it's becoming harder and harder to self finance musical ventures, it's a sad fact caused by the internet age we live in and the illegal downloading problem. Music can be heard and played all over the internet for free or with very little monetary return going to the artist, while this can result in royalty payouts to bigger mainstream and popular acts, independent musicians like myself in the smaller rock guitar instrumental genre lose out. This year, I want to release two new albums and record and release one off singles like the recent 'Dream Within A Dream', plus create new videos of me playing some of my popular tunes live. I can't do these without funding, just as no other business could either. In this social media obsessed age we live in, people seem to forget that 'likes' alone don't provide an income for artists. I receive very kind emails and comments on social media from fans who often ask me for more music, and why I haven't released any in several years. I always explain the above dilemma, to let them know I'm not just being lazy or have become disinterested in music. Music is my life's work, I love music and the guitar with all my heart and soul. It is for all of these reasons that I've decided to crowdfund both albums.

If you've followed my music before you'll know that it's been almost 13 years since the release of my last solo album Entranced. I've tried over the years to record and release a new full album but I've had to finally accept that I can't finance it myself anymore. Albums take quite a while to record, and although I have my own recording facilities, there are still costs (and very much time) involved, from the recording process itself to artwork, musician fees, CD pressing, marketing, publicity, etc. I've already got both new albums fully written, and a few of the tracks are in various stages of completion. The new albums are Shadows & Light, (the follow up to Entranced), an electric guitar extravaganza, and the all-acoustic album Distant Dreams. In order to get both these albums completed and released the right way, I need to raise $21,000 for the costs listed above. I can only do this with your help, and any contribution, no matter how small, will help me achieve my goal for this year to get 2 new albums released. I'll keep all those who contribute updated through a newsletter of how the crowdfunding is going and how close to the target amount we are. I hope to raise the full amount above to enable a professional level release, but if I can only raise half that amount I'll at least be able to record the albums and have a few CDs made for those of you who contributed with a CD inclusive option.

I've listed 8 different contribution options below, there's also a simple 'donate' button if you would like to contribute a lesser amount or don't want any of the items I'm offering. In any case, no matter how small or large an amount you contribute, I sincerely appreciate your interest and support of my music, and I promise you that both these albums will be of the quality you know and expect of me. Please share this webpage with anyone who may be interested in participating. Thank you :-)

Thank you so much,

Best wishes and love,

Mario